Electioneering Edition
All the fun has been turned into irony
So as implied at the end of our look at Vlad and Tucker, two of our election situations are blowing up way bigger than even usual (so far) for 2024. So we will take a further and deeper look. Today will be Pakistan's turn.
Pakistan actually had their election on Thursday. The mirrors to the US 2020 and 2024 elections haven't stopped yet. But we have plenty enough for our picture to develop. Our early reports went like this:
PTI approaches SC to seek review of verdict on electoral symbol
🇵🇰 Ahead of the February 8 elections, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has approached the Supreme Court (SC) seeking a review of the apex court's verdict on the party's internal elections and election symbol, Pakistani media reported.
⚖️ The PTI has asked the Supreme Court to review its January 13 verdict, in which the apex court upheld the Election Commission of Pakistan's verdict declaring the PTI's intra-party elections "unconstitutional" and withdrawing the party's election symbol. @geo_gaganauts 🔸
🇵🇰 Independence vs. pro-American course in Pakistan's politics
The elites are betting on the Pakistan Muslim League (PLM-N) and on Nawaz Sharif, whose credibility as a leader is challenged by allegations of corruption, as he is seen as a puppet of external forces.
🎖 Backed by the current military elite, which has historically had a major say in all affairs of the state, Sharif is seeking support from the West, particularly the US.
PTI's Independent candidate Gohar Ali Khan
On the contrary, Former PM and former leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan made no secret of his desire to pursue an independent course, developing ties with Russia and China, reducing Pakistan's dependence on the Western support.
However, Khan is currently in prison and has just been handed two sentences of 10 and 14 years. Khan has claimed that he was ousted by a US-backed conspiracy because the Biden administration didn't like his independent foreign policy, including overtures to Russia.
🗳 In order to legally contest the elections, under constant pressure from the state and law enforcement, the PTI had to choose Gohar Ali Khan, a lawyer and barrister, to replace the imprisoned Imran Khan.
🇷🇺🇨🇳 Ali Khan supports Imran Khan's policy of seeking independence from Western influence through partnerships with Russia and China, and further integration into the multipolar world. @geo_gaganauts 🔸
🇵🇰 🗳 Pakistan Suspends Mobile Phone Services As Voting On For New Government
Pakistan suspended mobile phone services nationwide on Thursday for election day, the interior ministry said, citing the need to "maintain law and order".
The ministry spokesman said "precious lives have been lost" in recent attacks in Pakistan and "security measures are essential to maintain law and order situation and to deal with potential threats".
📱 Media in Islamabad could not access mobile internet services as polls opened at 8:00 am (8:30 am IST), while there were also reports of poor access in the southern city of Karachi.
@geo_gaganauts 🔸
🔸Election protocols have been removed from the websites of all news TV channels.
News channels have been ordered not to show PTI's lead in the general elections. (Pakistan elections. The opposition is winning, but they have already started shooting at them. It was written that the evening in Pakistan is no longer languid. Let me remind you that this is a nuclear regional power. Very high proximity to the civilian one.) t.me/incognitoraf 🔸
Pakistan. The smoke looks like it's coming from a police station. There the police fired at the opposition. t.me/incognitoraf 🔸
🇵🇰🗳 Latest results: Independent candidates of PTI lead. t.me/R_Diplomat 🔸
Surprise, surprise
#PakistanElection
Leaderboard of National Assembly
Seats: 138/266
PTI/IND 82
PMLN 35
PPP 17
PTI winning ❓
Video shows party members celebrating. @ResonantNews 🔸
Independent candidates linked to jailed Khan outperform in Pakistan early tallies
Independent candidates linked to jailed former prime minister Imran Khan were outperforming expectations Friday in early tallies from Pakistan's election, after a long delay in results added to accusations of poll rigging.
👉 Read more: https://f24.my/A7My.g
▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫
So that's just Election Day. Not exactly a mirror of US 2020 but more of 2024 indications. Reminder from last week - we had an assassinated PTI politician and multiple dead police in the week ahead of the election. So far the US doesn't have those images - yet. The mirror leading up to this election is in the storm of legal cases - all the charges levelled at Imran Khan for everything from the most trivial of charges to “exposing state secrets”. The US legal system has never decided that an elephant (much less a cricket bat) is now inappropriate as a party logo - so far. Or that Republican primaries are unconstitutional, although they've done everything short of murder to keep Trump off the state ballots up until now this year. Neither appear to be ultimately on tap for the balance of 2024, though. The one best 2020 mirror (thus far) is the extreme hypocrisy of the US government. As I have been saying for the past year, “democracy” represents any form of government that they control. Once that control slips it's bye bye on using their copyrighted term “democracy”. The only arbiter on that eligibility is the USG.
The closest mirror to 2024 is actually in the corruption levels there are no attempts to even diminish much less hide. And obviously Trump legal cases (and the mug shot) would make a fairly short list.
So let's move along to the days following the election.
🇬🇧 🇵🇰 National elections in Pakistan: a colossal failure of pro-British forces in the country
Yesterday, Pakistan held its national parliamentary elections. According to the election committee, the number of registered voters exceeded 128 million.
The battle was primarily between five parties, with the focus on two of them: the Justice Movement (JM) led by Imran Khan and the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) led by Shahbaz Nawaz Sharif.
❓The purpose of these elections was to politically eliminate former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, by the Sharif family, who are controlled by the British crown, and the military command led by Asim Munir.
Imran Khan, accused of various unfounded violations, abuse of power, and corruption, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Even his wife, Bushra Bibi, was imprisoned.
The government of Shahbaz Sharif hoped to clear the way for their victory in the elections. A few months earlier, Nawaz Sharif's disgraced elder brother returned to the country, miraculously cleared of all corruption charges.
🔻However, the plan of the current authorities turned out to be a failure. They failed to consider that Khan's popularity is so great that his imprisonment under false pretenses would only increase his ratings. And this was reflected in the results.
▪️ From the beginning of the vote counting, the Justice Movement began to pull ahead of its opponents. In the two largest provinces, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, as well as in the capital region, the Justice Movement emerged as the leader with devastating results.
▪️ Even in other regions like Balochistan or Sindh, where Imran Khan barely received any votes in the past, he gained a significant amount of support. Preliminary data shows that by evening, the Justice Movement already had 154 seats out of the required 169 to obtain a majority and form a government.
❗️And amidst the disaster faced by Sharif's party, something interesting happened: first, there were internet outages across the country, causing issues with vote counting. Then hundreds and even thousands of security forces and military personnel began to appear at polling stations.
As a result, the counting was indefinitely halted. Imran Khan's party declared victory and urged supporters not to leave the polling stations, claiming that "the elections could be stolen."
Only 12 hours after the end of voting did the official presentation of the results begin, leading to the fair assumption that Sharif's leadership may have intervened to manipulate the votes in order to at least form a coalition government.
🔻In recent years, no party has obtained a majority, and the cabinet has always included representatives from different groups. Therefore, the current situation of the PML is truly disheartening, as the level of public support is catastrophically low. The last time the Pakistan Muslim League achieved a majority was in 1997.
The possibility of interference in the elections cannot be ruled out, as the Sharif family, especially Nawaz Sharif, is determined to hold on to power. This raises the question: will they go to such lengths? Certainly, it will not be possible to avoid the discontent of the population in that case.
High-resolution map
English version
#UK #Pakistan
@rybar Original msg 🔸
🇵🇰🗳 Polling Agents Kidnapped in Pakistan Elections: Media
Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party claims some of their polling agents have been kidnapped in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Days ago, they warned of a plan to abduct polling agents to interfere with the election results.
“Polling agents are vital for any political party on the day of the election as results of any polling station are compiled and announced in the presence of a polling agent who is also given the Form 45 which contains the results.”
🇵🇰 How Do Pakistan's Elections Size Up Without Imran Khan?
Experts have labelled Pakistan's general elections, which are being carried out without the participation of Imran Khan despite his widespread popularity, as "restricted" and "undemocratic."
🗳 Commenting on whether Imran Khan had forfeited his right to run in the polls in light of his multiple convictions, or if there was a conspiracy against him, Sushant Sareen, an expert on the issue, expressed his belief that it was just plain "dirty politics."
"In Pakistan, this is not a new phenomenon, as several leaders have been imprisoned in the past. Therefore, it is not just Imran Khan losing his right, but rather a conspiracy designed to prevent him from contesting," he stressed.
The elections will not be accepted by the international community because Imran Khan is jailed, says strategic analyst Qamar Agha.
“These cannot be seen as fair polls. How can a political figure like him be kept out of the general elections,” he asked, adding that it’s “undemocratic”.
🇵🇰 Blood, Politics & Pakistan’s General Elections
After a period of intense socio-political turmoil marked by numerous attacks, bomb blasts, and killings, the general election has finally taken place in Pakistan. It is evident that where general elections occur in Pakistan, there is often bloodshed.
"Political polarization has heightened distrust between the masses and the army, creating a breeding ground for unrest. External forces capitalize on this discord, amplifying disinformation," Salman Javed, political analyst, explained.
🗳 General Elections: A Tale of Two Countries in South Asia
The double standards of the Western media are evident as Bangladesh faced pressure over the lack of a "free and fair" election, while Pakistan seems to be receiving an easy pass.
"The international responses to the elections in Pakistan often hinge on the perceived role of the military and the fairness of the electoral process," Salman Javed, think tanker, said.
⚠️ It's Time for Pakistan to Revisit its Policies
During each election, there is bloodshed due to insecurity, border issues, and other perceived shortcomings of the Pakistani government's domestic and external policies.
"Regional instability, particularly in the western border regions with Afghanistan and Iran, has given birth to the ungoverned spaces where militants thrive. They exploit the politics of fear, leveraging existing tensions, perpetuating a cycle of violence during election periods," S. Javed, political analyst, expressed.
🇵🇰 Delays in Pakistan poll results, Imran Khan's party alleges mass rigging
As the results of Pakistan's elections are delayed, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has claimed that the mandate of the people of Pakistan is being stolen. The party said that independent results showed the PTI winning by a landslide, despite pre-poll rigging and repression.
“The votes for each candidate are tabulated at each polling station on the Form 45. Copies of these forms have been collected by PTI polling agents, which show them winning by a large majority. But Returning Officers are now manipulating the results using Form 47, which is a summary of all the Forms 45 from each polling station," the PTI posted on X.
🗳 The PTI claimed that there were reports of polling agents being kidnapped and forced to sign forged Form 45s. Imran Khan's party said it had video evidence of rigging. It said the people of Pakistan would not accept "rigged elections".
🇵🇰 Election Dispute in Pakistan: PTI's Independent Candidates Question Results
Despite the unofficial results showing a clear advantage for PTI-backed independents, concerns have arisen as the election commission has failed to announce the results within the mandated 12-hour timeframe.
The twist is that when crackdowns on PTI members, detentions of leaders, and human rights violations surged in Pakistan this month, global peace and human rights campaigns remained silent.
However, following Pakistan's general election, the US and related human rights organizations have now taken notice of these events.
🗳 Anxiety Surges As PTI Leads and Potential Foreign Policy Shift Looms
"It is disheartening that in a democratic nation, the election results are still not announced on the second day after the election," the anonymous ex-Punjab political analyst said.
If PTI supported candidates win the elections and make government, then there is a big chance that Pakistan would revisit its internal, foreign policy, along with international affairs.
In the meantime, the US and its allies are worried about what Pakistan's foreign policy would be if Imran Khan's party wins.
@geo_gaganauts 🔸
🇵🇰 Imran Khan's PTI leads as Nawaz Sharif plans to deliver a speech
As Pakistan's general elections continue, Nawaz Sharif, leader of the PML-N, is preparing to make a public speech that social media users suspect will be his victory speech.
However, the elections are not yet over and according to the latest data, independent candidates (those affiliated with Imran Khan's PTI, which was banned from direct participation) won 62 seats, while the PML-N secured only 46.
Each party needs to secure 134 seats to form a majority government, which seems to be the common goal of all participants.
❗️🇵🇰 PM Nawaz Sharif claims victory, announces forming next govt
In his “victory speech”, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif has announced forming the next government in the country.
What's happening with 🇵🇰 #Pakistan's election ?
#PTI Chairman BR Gohar yesterday claimed to have won up-to 150+ seats in the election yesterday. The election that was supposed to be announced yesterday night has been delayed through out the night.
#NawazSharif, the former PM that was seen #trailing in his own constituency yesterday seems to have magically won.
Interesting part is as per the above image there are more total votes than the eligible voters in his constituency.
Total Votes - 293693
Eligible votes - 294043
Several other big PTI candidates who were leading seems to be suddenly losing as the votes are being finally counted now.
PTI and its followers allege massive rigging has happened throughout the night.
However, the problem is major media houses across the world reported PTI winning, the current events going on in Pakistan are too brazen. We will have to wait and see how the public/PTI voters respond to this.
@ResonantNews 🔸
Senior Vice President of #PTI, Sher Afzal Khan Marwat threatens 'War' if a 'new' result comes out in an hour.
@ResonantNews 🔸
Leaked confidential footage of what Pakistani Chief Asim Munir was doing yesterday night during elections.
@ResonantNews 🔸
Never have truer words been spoken.
Jai hind.
Credits as stated.
@ResonantNews 🔸
🇵🇰 At least 4 Pakistanis killed in police firing in Shangla; many were injured and others were unlawfully arrested.
Protests have broken out across the country after the election results were declared late last night by the "establishment" regime and has been manipulated in an attempt to stop the landslide victory of the PTI party.
#Pakistan
🔰@MilitaryNewsEN 🔸
Pakistan Army takes over vote counting.
ISI men can be seen dressed in casual, with pistol in his hand.
<A Democrazy called Pakistan 🇵🇰 >
@ResonantNews 🔸
🔸Our sources:
It's going to be COALITION government in Pakistan. @ResonantNews 🔸
Literally Pakistani elections right now. @The_Castleton🔸
🇵🇰 Imran Khan Rejects Nawaz Sharif’s Victory Claim in Pakistan Election
Pakistan‘s ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan has claimed victory, as independent candidates backed by his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party led other parties in official results. However, the official election body still has not announced the election results.
In an AI generated speech shortly after midnight, Khan slammed Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) leader Nawaz Sharif, who delivered a victory speech on Friday evening on account of being the single largest party by winning 69 seats.
“Nawaz Sharif is a person of low intelligence. In spite of trailing by over 30 seats in the official results, he delivered a victory speech. No Pakistani voter is going to accept Nawaz Sharif’s words and even the international media has been writing about it,” stated Khan.
🗳 According to official results by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), independents backed by Khan have won over 90 seats, as compared to 70 seats won by PML-N.
@geo_gaganauts 🔸
🇵🇰 #Pakistani COAS (Chief of the Army Staff) congratulates the entire Pakistani Nation, Caretaker Government, Election Commission of Pakistan, Political Parties and all winning candidates on successful conduct of General Elections 2024. 🤡
@ResonantNews 🔸
The ‘generals’ elections’ that turned against Pakistan’s military
Pakistan’s 2024 general elections were dubbed the “most rigged” in the country’s history, with the popular Imran Khan barred from running and the military seen as backing former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. That was before results showed Khan-backed independent candidates leading the race. Sharif on Friday claimed victory, setting the stage for a turbulent period as an irate electorate reacted to the military’s perceived meddling in politics – again.
👉 Read more: https://f24.my/A7Uu.g 🔸
🎥🇵🇰🗳️ ~ Incredible things are happening in Pakistan during #GE2024.
In Sindh province even famous footballers casted their votes. Ballot boxes were filled with fake vote slips in names of Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Mbappe, Messi, etc. to make the ruling party win in a small town as no real people casted their votes for them. 😂 t.me/IR_Pakistan 🔸
⚡️🇵🇰 Imran Khan's PTI party wins and receives the majority of seats in the Pakistani parliament (56 seats out of 134, second place Nawaz Sharif's PML-N party 43 seats).
Tehreek-e-Insaf's victory is being called "slavery rejected", people rejected slavery, says party chairman lawyer Gohar Khan.
PTI announced the formation of a central government in Pakistan.
The US, EU, UK, Australia, UN and international human rights bodies have raised concerns about the electoral process and called for an investigation into reports of interference and fraud.
🇵🇰 Khan through his lawyers urges people to come out tomorrow at 2 PM. and hold peaceful protests in any part of the country where rigging has taken place and prevent any fraud that may deny PTI from its rightful 2/3 majority.
The authorities blocked 📱.
t.me/R_Diplomat 🔸
🔸By the way, there are opposition rallies in Pakistan. The government has already accused the opposition of rigging the elections. It's only beginning.
t.me/incognitoraf 🔸
🍏🍎🍐🍊
🐦⬛️🇵🇰 Two "winners" of the elections in Pakistan: Imran Khan celebrates from prison, the West demands an international investigation
▪️Two of the main political opponents have declared victory in the elections in Pakistan, and none of them will most likely be able to form a parliamentary majority on their own.
▪️The Election Commission confirmed that independent candidates, supported by Khan, won the most mandates, even though Khan is in prison and his party is banned from the ballot.
🚀 t.me/istocni_front 🔸
▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰 ▫ 🇵🇰
So, if all that cleared everything up for you, please tell the rest of us about it in the comments! 😅
The number of PTI seats won ranges from 154 down to a low of 56. And every report listed has a different number. (One has two different ones in the same report, but they are only separated by one - commonly deemed close enough for government work and by the media in the West.) To close this out I am going to bullet point the mirrors:
Military and police takeover counting (in 2020 it was the Democrat Gestapo - close enough.)
Failure to report results within statutory limits (in 2020 reconfiguring the results took several days).
Polling agents kidnapped or forced to sign inaccurate documents (2020 - Republican poll workers denied entry/access to inspect ballots).
Double standards of Western media/pols (There were NO technical problems in 2020; dissidents were the only real concern).
Sharif declares victory before “official” results released. (Biden did the same in 2020)
More votes than voters (in 2020 there were 30 million extras above registered eligible voters).
Gohar Khan claims “massive rigging” as their 150+ seats keep disappearing (Trump claimed the 2020 election was being stolen from the American people).
Imran Khan (via AI rendering) characterizes Sharif as “low intelligence” ( same for Trump on Biden from 2019 to today and beyond!)
Military confirms “free and fair” election (in 2020 it was agents of the MIC).
Most rigged election in history - no matter who won the military would still be the shadow power (current state of all of the Western world; this is also from the last expanded France24 article regarding Pakistan).
Fake footballer votes in areas Sharif would not come close to winning (in 2020 every county in the US had flipped votes - even where they did not achieve a difference in the local result - for building the fiction of Biden winning the “popular” vote).
Communication/media outages (we'll anticipate that as a 2024 election forecast).
A little background information on our Sharif character (from the same France24 article and a spot of Wikipedia), former military selected prime minister - as was Imran Khan, btw - is very interesting. According to the journalist, he was in exile for 4 years prior to October 2023 to avoid serving a 10 year prison sentence. Within five weeks after his repatriation all of his corruption convictions (a multiple felon - could definitely be Biden in a just world or Lula in an unjust one) were overturned (where have we seen that before? hint - just about 17 months earlier in Brazil!) leaving him free to seek a fourth non consecutive term. He is a billionaire businessman (many other examples exist, of course, but doesn't Trump leap to mind?). Ironically, his older brother, Shehbaz (mentioned above in the Rybar piece), had assumed power after Imran Khan was deposed and last August dissolved the Parliament, setting the stage for this election. Rybar (above) states this family is a British collaborative; we'll watch for that too.
This could all positively be much more complex than it appears at first glance. But as an exercise to “show” the people the world they have been living in VS. the world they thought they were living in, it may be one of the best examples in that particular region. Will certainly be watching with interest; we may have another theatrical plan inviting the popcorn poppers to sit and watch.
Let's not forget that this election took place on the 8th of the month, either. If we wind up with an “insurrection” that will almost certainly just be a coincidence.
The situation in Pakistan is now almost as unreal as in the U.S. Thanks for this great overview and summary.
This is some crazy stuff. This has more twists than the 2020 election. I love the Never Won a War slogan. Should be on a tshirt. Probably should call my designer first thing in the am and get that going. Don’t we have an election coming up.